Installation
Installing the Narrator on the GoPro Hero:
- The Narrator comes in two pieces, the Big Part and the Front Plate (with spring clips). Start by putting the Front Plate onto the front of your GoPro Hero.
- Now check to see that the spring clips fit your camera. The wire spring clips may be adjusted as needed to fit. If you use a GoPro BacPac battery, you will need to stretch the clips out to fit, or the clips may need to be compressed a little after several times of use.
- The clips should look like this – they should not quite reach the back of the camera:
Clips should not quite reach the back of the camera – they need to have some spring strength when you attach the camera to the main part of the Narrator - Now put the Narrator Big Part against the back of the GoPro – try to line them up squarely, not too crooked. The purge valve should be at the bottom. The GoPro should be sandwiched between the Front Plate and the Big Part.
- Now squish the sandwich. Pull the clips over the flat plate on the Big Part. The whole thing should be a tightly held together sandwich.
- If your sandwich can wiggle, your spring clips are not tight enough. You must tighten the spring clips.
- Tightening the spring clips is easy. Take the Front Plate off your GoPro. Put the Front Plate on a table. Make yours look like the photo below:
This is how the clips should look before you attach the main part of the NarratorNot like this:
This is not the way the clips should be aligned - Do one wire spring clip at a time. Put both of your thumbs on the long flat part of one wire spring clip.
- Now press with your thumbs straight down. Press with enough force, about ten pounds, to tighten the clip – bringing the long flat wire closer to the front plate. Do the same thing to the second clip. Check to see if you actually tightened the clips and that they aren’t tighter on one side than the other by putting the Front Plate on the GoPro – it should look like this:
This is how the clips and the camera should look before you attach the main part of the Narrator - You may have to fiddle with it a bit to get it all even. Once it is adjusted, it should stay that way if it isn’t smashed in your dive bag or sat on somewhere. Check each time you put it on your GoPro to see that you have a good tight sandwich. If it becomes loose, water may leak past the gasket and make noise on your videos. It is better to be a little tight than too loose.
How to Use
How to Use the Narrator
Now that the Narrator is attached to your GoPro – it’s time to try it out. This part is easy – you just clear the water from the Narrator and talk. But always remember, if you are in adverse conditions, or are at all nervous or in an uncomfortable or dangerous situation, do not use the Narrator. The Narrator is not a breathing device. If all is well and you’re in good conditions, here are a few tips to make this easier.
- Seal the end against your face. It doesn’t have to be a perfect seal – a beard will seal ok. But water leaking in here may be heard on the video, so keep it pressed to your face.
- You’ll need to purge the water from the system.It doesn’t have to be perfectly dry, but water sloshing around inside will make noise in your videos.
- Purging is easy. Cover the Bubble Silencer on the topside of the voice chamber with your fingers (doesn’t have to be a perfect seal) and just blow some air into the Narrator. You don’t have to cover the bubble silencer, but it will save you air. When you see bubbles coming out the purge valve, it is clear.
- Speak. You don’t need to shout, just speak normally. Of course, if you are videoing a shark about to bite your buddy, go ahead and scream – it will make a more exciting video!
- You may point your GoPro in any direction – just keep your face sealed to the Narrator.
- Remember, the Narrator is not a breathing device. It will not supply air. If you are snorkeling, you’ll need to surface to breathe. If you are diving on scuba, you’ll need to get your regulator back in your mouth, purge it (use your purge button on your regulator) then carefully take a breath – stop inhaling if you detect water. Really, we need to say this to keep everyone safe. If you aren’t comfortable using the Narrator, don’t. Get instruction from a certified instructor at your local dive shop.
- If you’re a scuba diver and aren’t very comfortable or don’t understand the limitations of using the Narrator, get more instruction from your local dive shop. We all should be comfortable with our scuba regulators out of our mouth – you never know when it is going to get pulled or kicked out, and regularly removing it in a controlled fashion, as when using the Narrator, will make you a better, safer, more confident diver.
- For convenience, scuba divers may want to get a regulator necklace to keep your regulator handy and avoid having to hold it in your hand while you are narrating video, or sweeping to find it when you need air.
- If you are a snorkeler, you must remember that the Narrator is not a breathing device. You must surface to breathe. You should get training from a certified instructor if you are not 100% comfortable and experienced at snorkeling.